Westpac shares have fallen at the open after Australia’s financial intelligence agency accused the country’s second largest lender of breaching anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing laws more than 23 million times.
The bank’s share price were 2.3 per cent lower at $25.95 after 15 minutes of trade on the Australian Securities Exchange, hitting a fresh six-month low of $25.90 along the way.
The AUSTRAC court action could lead to a huge fine for Westpac after rival Commonwealth Bank last year settled a similar case related to 53,000 breaches for an Australian corporate record $700 million.
AAP